Profile – Christina Robinson

My name is Christina Robinson, and I am EFA’s Farm Programs Manager.

I was initially drawn to EFA because I liked the idea of working in agriculture, since I grew up in a rural community and the thought of working with farmers resonated with me. It didn’t take very long to fall in love with this industry and this organization – and now I’ve been here more than 10 years. There is such variety and we can see the fruits of our efforts in the success of our farmers. At EFA we have a great group of people to work with; in our farmers, our staff team, and in the other organizations we work with.

Born in Calgary and raised in Delia, Alberta, I’ve been married to my husband Mike for 15 years and have an eleven year old son named Grayden, and a yellow lab named Lily. Each spring we also have a flock of 4-H lambs that live with us. My interests outside of work focus around spending time with my family, whether it’s renovating one of our flip properties, camping, or traveling on our motorcycles. The last few years I’ve become a football mom, with my son playing on the Airdrie Storm football team. 2017 is a big year for my family, as we have moved to New Zealand for a year of adventure and personal growth! I’m still working with EFA, on projects that I can work on remotely.

My favorite memory during my time at EFA is from an AGM just a few years after I started, when Alberta egg farmers voted in favor of making accreditation for the Start Clean – Stay Clean on-farm food safety program mandatory, and then seeing each of the farmers achieve that goal by the deadline. We have seen similar farmer-led motions in the areas of hen housing and animal care. It is very inspiring and motivating to see our farmers wanting to lead the way in demonstrating excellence.

I feel our pioneering spirit and desire to continually improve is at the heart of EFA’s success. There is never a time when EFA is not looking for new ideas, working to strengthen relationships, or digging into potential solutions for the challenges that lay before us. There is a culture of empowering and building up people for success, whether that’s our staff or farmers. This, together with our strong governance structure, has allowed EFA to consistently achieve the goals we’ve set out, contributing to the long-term success of our farmers.

As I look ahead to the future for EFA, I see a period of growth with consumers, creating both opportunities and challenges. We are also working to proactively address the challenges that face EFA, ensuring our farm education and programs help all egg farmers meet the high standards for food safety, animal care and environmentally responsible farming practices, while increasing the transparency with which the industry operates.